Kondoru
by hslippery
Summary: Well into his third year, Hikigaya Hachiman encounters strange behavior from people around, that leads him to believe something is amiss with his little world. As Hikigaya tries to dig further into this phenomena, he finds secrets, dirty enough to pollute a river. Thriller/ Mytery
1. Chapter 1

The Vultures circle

The sun slanted through the fogged windows of the service club room even as cold winds had started blowing through the hall ways of our school's corridors, announcing the turning of summer into autumn.

Wild leaves and petals blew across the courtyard and the playground as the Riajuu prince and his team mates pressed each other in pointless running. Can you imagine? Eleven people on one side run after the ball while another eleven try to run…after the same ball? Ridiculous!

Meanwhile, I had opened the door to our club room to find our resident cat lady and well-mannered Ice Queen pouring out fresh water into the tea making machine we used so much.

Before I could greet her though, she interrupted me.

"Tea, Hikigaya-kun?"

"Hello to you too. Yes, please."

"Oh," she straightened herself, "Hikigaya kun has begun caring about receiving greetings from others too. That counts as progress, doesn't it?" She looked over her shoulder and gave a rather condescending smile. I could hear my insult sensors screaming. Something big was coming.

"I think Hiratsuka sensei's request in now nearing completion."

"Which one?"

"The one about fixing you… though there may be one or two _I_ need fixing…" that last part came out in barely a whisper and I wasn't sure I was meant to hear that.

"Well, then, I think it's about time I retired from official duties. I've done enough." I said with a sigh and looked over towards her.

"Amazing!" she said with a hand at her chin, "he's already thinking about retirement when he hasn't even started working. Just how lazy are you, Lazy-kun?"

Wait a minute. She didn't say Hikki-lazy kun? Don't just drop people's names, Yukinoshita san.

"Oh, no. I meant leave the club. Since I have done enough, and you have evaluated me as being A-okay, as if something was wrong with me before, I think I can leave now and go back to my dear bed and go to sleep."

"Hikigaya kun, I can put you to eternal sleep right here. Just give me the word."

Vow, that's scary indeed. What are you going to do? Poison my tea? I think I'd rather not drink my tea now.

"Here." She offered me my cup of tea, while I gave her a suspicious look.

The door burst open, and Yuigahama came in with her tribal greeting that is not worth repeating even in my head. Then she came directly over to me with a pout, "Hikki, you didn't wait for me. Why didn't you?"

Ow, ow, she seems to have levelled up her powers, I thought as she hit me repeatedly.

"I'm sorry, I forgot.."

We were interrupted by two polite knocks, and Yuigahama immediately went back to her seat, although that might also have been due to the cold look and harsh comment would have come from Yukinoshita any time now.

"Come in." Our president called out. Does she have to talk elegantly too?

"Hello everyone." A sweet smiling 2nd year student came in. His smile was sweet, putridly sweet. It was sickening that it could be so sweet.

"Ah, Hayama-kun, Hello" Yuigahama welcomed him. Yukinoshita was looking at him with a wary eye, while I looked at him with narrowed eyes.

Of course Yuigahama would welcome him since he was from her own cliché, but that didn't mean any of the others were comfortable around him.

"What brings you here, Hayama-kun?"

"Ah, I just needed to talk to Hikitani kun for a bit, that's all…" His voice petered out as he found out to his great discomfort that… the Ice Queen was staring daggers at him. And this time, she looked downright hostile and murderous.

"No, you cannot come in here and request a single member's help. Either we all help or none of us do." She said with an air of finality.

"Wait a minute, don't I get a say in this?" I interjected.

"No, you don't. Who is the club president? That's right, Hikigaya-kun. Anything related to the Service club needs to go through me."

Why was she so hell bent on me staying away from Hayama?

Meanwhile Hayama had decided to appeal to Yuigahama, since they were relatively closer. Good tactic Hayama-san. The Yurigahama can melt the Ice right off the Ice Queen.

But for the first time, I saw Yuigahama shaking her head. "No, Hayama. I don't want Hikki involved in anything."

If I was surprised at Yuigahama's aggressive stance, I didn't show it. But Hayama's face seemed to twist with disappointment.

"Very well." He sighed with an air of resignation. "The matter is too private to discuss. So I'll take my leave." He bowed and left with a last backward glance at me.

I kept my face neutral the entire time.

A heavy silence descended the room and we could all hear Hayama's footsteps receding through the empty hallway outside. Not surprising given this wing was usually entirely deserted during these hours.

As the sounds of his footsteps disappeared, I turned around to object with the way Hayama had been handled.

I mean, it's not like I loved working for him, but the last time he came with a request, it was a well thought out one, that had saved Ebina from falling out of the group. And since she had herself admitted she had needed the cliché, and she was facing a lot of other problems in her personal life, him asking me to save the cliché was understandable, even if it continued their fake relationships.

"Yukinoshi-" I had just turned around when I saw her get up and wave a hand silencing me.

She went to the door, looked outside, and then turned back satisfied. Was she making sure no one was outside? She hadn't done this before. Unusual…

"Hikigaya kun." She returned towards our table, but to my utter surprise, stopped in front of the table, and placed her hands firmly on the table, looking into my eyes intently. For some reason, I didn't remove my gaze.

"Yes?" No stuttering. I briefly congratulated myself for that achievement.

"You will not listen to his request at any point in time, inside or outside the school. Is that understood?" Her regard was as intense and powerful as a lion bearing down on its prey.

"Okay. But-Why?"

"There is no point in me explaining trivial matters. Let's just call it an executive decision on the part of the club president. Do you have any problems?"

I made to reply, but she cut me off again.

"Actually, scratch that. You _don't_ have any problems."

Wow, she had just disregarded every rule in the democracy book. And what's with the executive decision? Well, I am a corporate slave after all this avoidance, huh? Seems I failed in the quest to avoid corporate slaverism after all.

"Very well, I won't do any such thing." I gave her a suspicious look, then went back to the book.

But my mind was anywhere but in the world of shoujo manga fantasy that I was pretending to read.

That was unusually cold of Yukinoshita to do the very opposite of what the Service Club was supposed to do.

What was even more surprising was the fact that Yuigahama never once objected despite Hayama being in her cliché. Such a development was…what, Interesting? Disturbing? I had no idea what to think.

No matter what Yukinoshita thought of Hayama, this entire thing smacked of secrets.

Was it something in her past with Hayama?

Then how would Yuigahama know about it? It naturally followed that if Yuigahama had not stopped Hayama's request, then she was in concurrence with Yukinoshita.

Of course I was assuming Yukinoshita had told Yuigahama of her past.

Though I prided myself in my accurate analysis of others motives, with Yukinoshita I just couldn't be sure. Did she open up enough to tell Yuigahama everything?

If not, how could the two of them synchronize with each other?

With these thoughts swirling in my mind, we continued in the tense don't-ask-questions atmosphere until it was time to go.

"Hikigaya-kun, just keep in mind what I told you."

"What are you, my mother? Keeping me from bad influence and all that…" I teased her lightly.

"That's not funny, Hikigaya kun."

"Fine, fine." I raised my hands in a placating gesture.

With a last final warning glare my way, she turned around, dismissing me entirely, and giving her full attention to the table that she would clean up at the end of every day.

I took that as a cue to affect my escape, and I was glad for it.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

My phone vibrated as I was unlocking the chain on my noble steed- a bike of course.

That's funny, did I have any engagements or meetings today? I laughed at the sarcasm of my own joke. Ha! Meetings indeed. As if I was a riajuu king or something.

"Onii chan, Komachi is at the mall which is on your way back home. I need someone to carry the bags. Meet me at the food court."

Tch, so cold, and did she even request my help? No, she was just assuming I had the energy after classes and club to carry around her heavy shopping. Well, better me than that toad of an insect. I have to keep an eye on him and…uh, flatten him or something.

I got on my bike and was just about to pedal off when I heard a faint "Hikki".

I sighed with exasperation. Can I not get peace of mind even when I'm about to ride my bike?

I waited for her as she made her way towards me.

"What?" I decided to keep this short

"Rude, Hikki." She threw an angry glance at me. Gosh, even her angry face was cute… No, not what you should be thinking, Hachiman.

"I need to get to the mall."

"What?" She looked genuinely shocked at that. "Who are you meeting?"

"A girl" I decided to tease her a bit.

"No way…" She fell into thought. "Okay, then, I'm also coming with Hikki."

Wait a minute, this was not going the way I wanted it to go. But such few things went my way anymore.

"It's just Komachi, Yuigahama. She needs help with the shopping. Ad no, you are not coming with me. I need to get there quickly on the bike and you will only delay me. Speaking of which, you are delaying me now."

Her face seemed to relax instantly.

"Ah, ok, that's fine then."

I raised my eyebrow asking her to hurry up what she wanted to say.

"Ah, oh, yes, yes." No need to say yes so many times. "I just wanted to make sure you aren't going to talk to Hayama."

What, this again? What was going on here?

"Yuigahama, is it not weird that the two of you don't want to help someone?"

"But it was a personal request! I mean, we all know how those go…"

What did that mean? How did that go? And what's with the nervous expression on your face?

"How do they go?" I asked raising an eyebrow in askance.

"Never mind, Hikki, just don't talk to him, that's all. Promise me. Please." She gave those puppy brown eyes treatment, and suddenly I felt very discomfited. What was it with these girls? Why were they so desperate to keep me away?

"Alright, fine. I won't do it." I told her with a sigh. Anything to get away from your clutches, Yuigahama san.

"Now, if you will excuse me, hell hath no fury like a delayed sister, or so the saying goes."

"What? But I don't know that saying."

"What a surprise" I muttered under my breath. What was I doing spouting Shakespeare at her? If it was Yukinoshita, she might have understood.

"I need to get to Komachi, is what I'm saying."

"O-Oh, Okay."

With a last look, I turned around and cycled off, her disturbed face weighing on my mind far much more than what it should have.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The cool wind brushed my hair back as I rode onwards with exhilaration and the wind snapped my clothes about me.

My thoughts though were still a mess.

I did not have any facts, but you know that feeling when you see two lights in the distance on a dark road with only one lane? Yep, that's what I was feeling right now. As if…something was happening around me and I was blissfully oblivious about it.

Obliviousness was sometimes a mercy. What you did not know didn't hurt you.

But on the other side of the coin, if you didn't see a car coming from the side, then got injured in an accident, wasn't it better to know that car was coming beforehand? To try and avoid it?

People always wanted to not know what was going on with others' lives because if they did, they would be forced to act; or not act and rue their lack of actions and face the stigma of not having acted for the rest of their lives.

There was that photographer who loved to photograph war zones. Then he decided to snap a photograph of a starving child about to die in Africa, and a vulture waiting by his side…waiting for him to die so the vulture could devour him.

So when the common folks asked him why he didn't do anything about it, he ended up losing control of his life and committed suicide.

Because he felt guilt for not doing anything. For disregarding the child's fate and proposing that he was being a 'professional'.

Was this a corollary to life in its entirety?

No matter, I shook my head, clearing all thoughts. I imagine my eyes looked deader than usual. But such was the reality of life.

Things would occur as they did, in their own time, and there was no stopping that.

I arrived in front of the mall and locked up the bike, proceeding towards the food court.

And found Komachi in a very dangerous situation indeed.

She had been kidnapped by Chiba's resident demon queen, Haruno Yukinoshita, who was also sitting with a well-dressed young man at an airy Italian style cafe.

"Hikigaya kun, Hikigaya kun, this way. Join us." So loud. Does she have to attract attention so much? Wait, what am I asking? Of course she needs so much attention. Even if she doesn't need it, she still gets it.

Something was off though.

Usually, Komachi's scheming powers matched that of Haruno's, and no, I say that with immense pride. She really is on par with the best.

But today, she looked quite uncomfortable. Was it because of the young man sitting besides Haruno?

"Ah, Hikigaya kun. You look tired. Come, come, do join us." She waved me towards an empty chair, and reluctantly, I dragged my feet towards the group.

"Actually," Komachi interrupted raising her hand as if she was in school, "I think me and Onii chan will just leave the two of you alone."

The young unnamed gentleman nodded his head as if agreeing with all his heart. Was that sweat on his forehead? Strange… he might be feeling nervous. I'm sure most of the others felt the same way.

"What are you saying, Komachi chan? I would love for the two of you to join us. I know Hikigaya kun likes his coffee sweet right?"

She suddenly stood up and waved her arms beckoning the waiter who came over double time, all the while the rest of us stayed silent.

"One coffee, extra sugar. Anything to eat Hikigaya kun?"

I shook my head.

"Don't be like that, I'm paying you knooow." She drew out the last word like a kouhai of mine that I knew. "Black Forest cake then."

Haruno continued her chatting with Komachi, and it was all inconsequential. I felt she was trying to make a point out of ignoring the person besides her.

As awkward as it looked, I was never one to start up conversations with someone I did not, especially if he had something personal to do with Haruno.

It occurred to me that this was the perfect time to see what happened to people who listlessly fawned over someone who was as dismissive as Haruno. Not 'see' as much as observe.

From what I had read into Haruno from my interactions with her before, if she was as disinterested in this person as she was showing, she would dismiss him in a painful manner…with a smile on her face. And the person would go away feeling he had conquered all just because she decided to give him a smile.

"Haruno san, can I get you something?"

Interrupting Haruno when she was chatting with Komachi might not have been the best thing.

"Yeah, sure." She said turning her head around. I averted my gaze, not wanting to add awkwardness to the person's attempt at gaining attention.

And almost missed the next exchange.

"Go over there to the counter, buy yourself a few manliness points, then get out of here."

Have you ever seen a Samurai movie? When a certain samurai slices through with one single move. The difference in their expertise levels is so different, or perhaps it's the technique that is missing from the fallen warrior's repertoire of moves.

Now imagine if an assassin does this move. What makes it unorthodox, downright un-professional for an assassin to fight this way is that an assassin's style of fighting precludes any fighting in the first place. An assassin never takes on his/her opponent head on, that's what a warrior does.

I seemed to have lost myself into these analogies.

If there was anything that was surprising, it was that Haruno dismissed him so publicly.

If she had called me a monster of self consciousness, then I would have called her a monster of facades. The Haruno I knew got her point across in the most subtle of fashions, but the Haruno I saw in front of me was entirely different.

With utter dismissal, Haruno got up and started walking away, virtually dragging Komachi away. What choice did I have but to follow?

If there was one word that could describe me right now, it would be 'dumbfounded'.

Unsurprisingly, Haruno took her leave immediately after walking a distance away and near the exit. And the Haruno I saw leaving was so tense, I could not recall the last time I had seen a frown on her face. Cold disregard, yes, calculated manipulation, definitely, but a frown, never.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Most of our walk back home was near silent.

I imagine Komachi had yet to experience something of this magnitude of social rejection that she witnessed today.

She was the first to break the silence.

"Onii chan, is this how a rejection happens?"

I stayed completely silent at this.

I understood the premise of a rejection. If there was no chemistry nor was there any common ground, a rejection became necessary.

Was I too hasty in classifying my own rejection as someone else's fault? I never knew anything about Orimoto, so how much of it was my fault? Was it not natural for her to reject me?

Sure, the society around me reacted with, what I have now come to understand as characteristic, disdain. And my views on the reaction of the sheep of the society were justified.

But did that young man deserve the rejection he got from Haruno.

No, every way I looked at it, this was highly uncharacteristic of Haruno.

Komachi seemed to be mumbling her thoughts to herself throughout.

"She's never this way…"

She suddenly turned towards me and I could see the earnestness clearly in her eyes.

"Onii chan, I want you to promise me something." She took a breath. "I want you to keep Yukino san safe."

The effect was immediate. I spluttered a cough out.

"What are you talking about, Komachi? "

She raised her hand and held her chin. "Komachi thinks Haruno is very disturbed right now. If she becomes angry with Yukino san, I don't know what will happen to her."

She turned towards me. "So that's my request then. I want you to help Yukino san if she ever falls into trouble."

I cleared my throat. "First of all, I think she's perfectly fine. Second, she can deal with her family issues by herself. Third, even if she is in trouble, how will I know-"

"No. Stop." She clapped a hand over my mouth. "Onii chan doesn't know the right answer to the question so I will tell him." She looked at me with an intense angry face. "The answer, Onii chan, is 'Of course Komachi, anything for Yukino san'. That's the answer."

"Fine." I sighed. "I'll do it."

We were approaching the main road where there were a line of famous shops where students and other working class usually hung out.

A certain blond boy with his cliché stood out. He was accompanied by the Fire Queen along with Tobe and err… the other two stooges, whatever their irrelevant names were.

On an impulse, I said, "Komachi, go on, I'll be home in an hour."

"Komachi wants Onii chan to remember her request."

"I will." I waved as she crossed the road, and turned to go another way. The road diverged, and I wish I had taken the other one, the well beaten path of retreat and not knowing.

But if I wanted to know what was going on, I had to talk to Hayama about what was going on. Now, of course, I knew what I had promised Yukinoshita and Yuigahama some time back, but if I wanted to get something done, I needed to have this conversation with Hayama.

I approached the group whose female part was window shopping (don't look at me like that! I know the word from when I went with Komachi to the mall) and the male counterpart walking leisurely with those completely reckless and open smiles.

Have some respect for your surroundings and the loners, damn you!

Hayama saw me approaching, and said something to his three stooges, then surreptitiously slipped away making his way towards me. I really hated the way he did things so smoothly. Disengaging from an inquisitive group of friends to make his way was no mean feat, and even though it was my specialty to stay unnoticed and incognito, he managed both to disappear and appear in front of people so well.

"Ah, Hikitani kun." He waved like a true riajuu. I'm right in front of you so why wave?

"What was your request?"

"Straight to the point as usual, huh?" He ran a hand through his hair, as if thinking how he wanted to handle this. If I knew any better, I would think he was nervous.

"Okay, it's just this. Can you keep an eye on Haruno for a bit?" What was it with the Yukinoshitas that everyone wanted me to take care of everyone.

I mean, for crying out loud, Komachi just asked me to keep Yukino safe. What next? Is someone else going to ask me to keep the mother safe as well?

Hayama must have seen the open conflict on my face and sighed.

"Look, you owe me nothing."

"No, but _you_ owe me a lot."

"No need to rub it in the face." He frowned, then continued. "But Haruno is going off the rails."

"I noticed…"

"So quickly!" Hayama seemed to be astonished by my lack of response or surprise at the statement. I mean I had just seen her unravel, but I wasn't going to tell him anything about that of course.

"Look, is there a point to any of this?" I asked him brazenly.

For the first time, I saw Hayama look nervous. He licked his lips then looked around, then got closer.

Personal space, man. And are you trying to give Ebina a nose bleed?

"I'll let you in on a secret, then, Hikitani kun."

"Love those." I muttered sarcastically.

If I've ever learned anything about secrets, it is that they are extremely burdensome.

Flashing me a curious look, Hayama continued. "There are rumors of a power struggle within the Yukinoshita family."

Aha. So it was politics was it? All the reason for me to stay out of it.

"All due disrespect," I told Hayama with a withering look, "I'd like to stay out of-" He raised a hand cutting me off.

"This one's different. From what I hear from various sources, Haruno is poised to usurp her father's seat and CEO position with Yukino's help."

And it would take some time before I formulated a response to that.

 **A/N** : Hello, ladies and gentlemen.

I have decided to dip my fingers into yet another fanfic, this time a mystery/thriller.

I'm not sure how frequently I will be updating this story since I have a lot going on, but expect the plot to take a turn for the drastic. I got the story setting and background, and this one's just the calm before the storm. I hope you enjoy.

For those of you who have read the LN series, this story owes its origins to 'Gekkou'. A translation is available on Baka Tsuki. I would recommend it.

'Til next time.


	2. Chapter 2

The Vultures Descend

A red haze descended on my eyes. Was it all connected? What was the connection? Was I simply making too much of the situation at hand? I'm quite sure someone said once that humans always look for a connection, a pattern, even if there might not be one. That's why humans saw a pattern even when there wasn't one.

Was there one here then?

If I dismissed this as coincidence, I might miss the pattern. If there was no pattern, however, then I would be boxing with shadows. What to do? Who to believe?

One thing was for sure though. The raven haired girl in front of me, our Ice Queen and Club President, was distraught. Sobbing like a little girl, caught like a hare in the headlights she was. And with her arms around Yukinoshita's shoulders, the only one who could comfort her, the only one Yukinoshita trusted enough. Pink hair all over her shoulders as she tried to comfort Yukinoshita in whatever way she could.

Because let's be honest here. She never did trust any of her family. And now one of them was dead.

….

The Previous day

"Haruno is poised to usurp her father's seat and CEO position with Yukino's help."

The words took me by surprise. And I have to say, I pride myself for not being surprised or impressed by anything or anyone.

Everyone is human. Everyone makes mistakes. Everyone has their prim little facades they throw up for one reason or the other.

A power struggle then. From what I had heard about people living in such high societies, power struggles were the norm.

It was an inevitable consequence of money that people lusted after power. After all, power was what got them money in the first place. Despite that, power in itself was a sweet seductress. Men and women ran after it, and it took them forever to understand that true power was a mirage.

But humans would be humans. They would always look for power, no matter how flimsy, and assert their dominance until some tragedy, man made or natural took everything away from them and they were left with nothing.

A true observer of society, a person who knew how power always proved to be an illusion, would understand the foolishness of such endeavors, but when someone like that came forward, they would be scorned by society for being weak, and not setting their goals high enough.

But the truly horrifying part of a power struggle was how low people were willing to stoop to get to it. Same with money. Many a politician or world leader had sold his soul for these things. And almost inevitably, wherever there was a struggle for power, came with it backstabbing and public and private attacks.

What concerned me about all this, very strangely was Yukinoshita's involvement in all this. Was this really the time for her to be involved in something as brutal as a power struggle?

I knew Yukinoshita. She did not have the political aggressiveness that Haruno and her mother possessed. And in politics, in the name of power, money or any such excuse, people who were trying to usurp the other's power had to be brutal and answer aggression with more aggression.

Did Yukinoshita have what it took? Because if she faltered for one moment, she might get caught in the crossfire and suffer extreme consequences. She couldn't take such a blow to herself. After all, if I had any amount of knowledge about Yukinoshita's relationships with her family, it was that she was her father's girl. What effects would this have on her?

Speaking of the Yukinoshita matriarch, I found it difficult to imagine that such actions could happen under her watch. No, scratch that, if such a thing was happening, it was by her approval, certainly. She was supposed to be the one that glued the family interests together, and it was hardly right that she would allow such a schism in the family.

Lost in my thoughts, I wandered away from Hayama, and only realized that I hadn't said anything to him when I left. Whatever, it wasn't like I was obligated to say good bye.

The problem with rumors, though, was that they were of extremely dubious nature. Nothing would confirm what they said.

I needed more information. For Komachi's sake and her request, I needed to insert myself into this amazing mess of a situation, and keep Yukinoshita away from the worst of it.

Strange, that. Was I trying to justify my involvement off of Komachi's request? Would I have done something for Yukinoshita regardless of Komachi's request?

I needed to rid myself of all conjecture. I couldn't let rumors grab hold of all my attention while I let the true clues slip by. If there was anything to see here. If there actually was anything to all of this.

…

The next day

The blue hair of one of my classmates swished from side to side as she was harassed by a spectacled outsider.

Kawasaki Saki (I remember her name!) was pursued by her (one and only) friend, Hina Ebina.

"Ne, Saki-Saki, can you come over tomorrow afternoon to the party…" Ebina's voice droned away as she asked Kawasaki out for some party or the other.

Dismissing them, I was about to turn up the music volume on my when all of a sudden my ears picked something.

"… need to be at the office for two or three hours."

Office? What office? Was Kawasaki working part time again?

"Oh okay." Ebina, however, wasn't one to give up. "Where are you working? I'll pick you up and we can go together." She suggested with great enthusiasm.

Kawasaki looked as if she was going to object Ebina's nosiness. Instead her answer was quite surprising.

"It's over at the Makuhari District."

Color me surprised. Wasn't that where the Yukinoshita company was based in? Was she working there by any chance?

Obviously, this was a nugget of information I could exploit later on if I needed to. She could provide me with some insider information.

Kawasaki and Ebina left the class. If I remembered correctly, she would head to the rooftop where she usually had her lunch. Maybe I should pursue this matter now?

With a groan, I stood up and stretched, a large yawn coming my way. Then made my way out of the class. Operation get information from Kawasaki was now active. I have to say, the name of the operation wasn't as cool as I first thought it would be.

I pushed open the hatch that led to the rootop, to find black lace san removing the lid from her bento.

As soon as I walked out onto the rooftop, she pushed her box behind her. I'm not here to steal your food , you know? That was what used to happen in the fifth grade, anyway, not in high school. Of course, no one stole my food away. It was just what happened to a cousin of a cousin, or so I'm told.

Kawasaki looked at me with half lidded eyes, and I felt apprehension and curiosity from that gaze. I'm not sure why I didn't feel like she was as intimidating as I thought she was before. Maybe she looked a bit more…mellow? Nice? I don't know.

First step's first though. Establish friendly relations and let them know I'm not a threat.

"Yo."

She nodded her head my way. So far so good.

"Uh…." Now that I was actually here, I very conveniently forgot what I had come here to ask.

She cleared her throat. "So, how's your sister?"

Oh, that's right, she knew Komachi from the time that insect of her brother had come to me with his request. Speaking of, how was the insect? Squashed? Eaten by the Chinese foodies?

I could never understand how the older sister could be so mature and nice, while the younger brother was such an insect. Where was my flamethrower, by the way?

"She's doing well. She didn't get into Sobu, but she's doing well." She nodded. "How's Keika chan?" I asked of her younger sister.

Holy gods of Shinto, where did that smile come from? She looked beautiful.

"She asked about you, you know? Haa-chan is what she calls you."

"I remember." I said thinking back to the Valentine's day event.

We shared a short comfortable silence. She, probably thinking of her sister, while I frantically searched my head for a strategy to open up a conversation regarding her part time work.

"So, I hear you've taken up another part time job?" I broke the silence.

"O-Oh, yes. I did."

"Not my place to ask, but do you have enough time? I mean," I added with a taking a long breath, "you've got family to take care of, and your finals and the entrance tests too."

She looked at me puzzled. Then smirked. And I tell you, a delinquent smirking is quite the sight.

"That's right. I guess no one told you. I got a recommendation to the local university."

Okay, that explained the free time. She didn't really need to apply now that she already had a recommendation.

"I'm just saving up for the next year or so." Very sensible of her. Wonder why I didn't plan ahead like her. Oh, right, I hated working. Not my problem if work was so…tough.

"So no problems at the new working place?" I asked carefully.

"No, none. I'm at a nice place, and they treat me all right."

"Wonder what place that might be? I thought corporate slaves were treated roughly everywhere."

"Oh, the place I work at isn't all that bad?"

"Is that so?" Time for the killer. "Where would that be?"

She wrinkled her nose at that. Had I been far too quick in my questions and made her suspicious?

"What, don't tell me you're looking for a job too?"

It's a wonderful thing, this human intuition. It makes you see things your way. So if Kawasaki was working a job, it would make sense that if I were asking her about it, it might look as if I were looking for a job too.

"S-Something like that." I quickly covered up, with a not too convincing lie.

"I see." She looked at me with inquisitive eyes.

"It's your club mate's family's company, actually."

"Yuigahama? What do they sell? Burned food?" I quipped.

Damn, even her confused face was cute.

"Sorry, that was an inside joke." I assuaged her. "So, the Yukinoshita company, eh?"

"Don't tell her about this."

"No reason to." I shrugged my shoulders.

I already knew Kawasaki was working there. I needed more information, though. Information only an insider would know.

I decided to prod carefully.

"Yukinoshita's been very…how shall I put it, disturbed lately." I said with narrowed eyes.

"So you do care for her…" She whispered.

"Well," she looked at me with rather uncertain eyes for nearly a minute, then as if deciding on something, pushed ahead with what she wanted to say.

"Yeah, things aren't exactly stable at the company, or so I hear."

"What do you mean?" I asked in my most insouciant voice, trying to feign casual but detached interest.

"Well, these are just rumors of course," she continued in an almost confidential whisper, and I had to strain my ears to hear what she was saying, "there seems to be…disagreements between the top management." She stopped short there, as if deciding against telling me more about it.

"By top management," I deduced, "you mean Yukinoshita's mother and father, right?"

A rather reluctant nod was thrown my way by the blue haired loner.

I decided to take another tack in order to find out more.

"Well, whatever. Their problems are of no concern to the likes of us, right?" She seemed to brighten up at that, and nodded her head rather vigorously.

"Say," I said in a conversational tone, "there is a theory of mine that I've always wanted to test out. And since the theory involves loners, and I cannot objectively take my own input on this, would you mind answering a few questions?"

She nodded her head, part in surprise and partly curious.

I took a deep breath. This would either flop entirely, or hit the jackpot.

I started rather shakily. "I've always thought that loners, being outsiders to the norm or society, are the only ones who can see people for who they are.

I have always believed that as loners, we can observe society for what it truly is. That is because we see things as they are. Further, we do not have to conform to the viewpoint of somebody else just because he or she is a friend. If you see people like Yuigahama, they feel the need to conform to their clique just in order to fit in one way or the other. What do you say?"

Kawasaki had a very thoughtful look on her face and then nodded.

"Yeah, I guess I agree somewhat…" I looked at her blankly. Either you agree or you don't, woman.

"Hey, no need to pressure me into conforming with your point of view." She smirked, using my own ideology against myself.

I smacked my head, defeated.

But before I could internally rail at myself for going all philosophical, Kawasaki spoke out.

"But I see what you mean. For example, people in higher societies are so enamored by glamor and glitz, they need everything to look shiny and new. They cannot stand to lose face when it comes to money. If you ask me, these people need heart transplants to get more emotion into them."

I decided to goad her into saying more and steer her more towards the topic about which I wanted to know.

"Yeah, I agree. I mean, look at Yukinoshita and her sister. The younger one is so harsh all the time, while the older one is so manipulative and dismissive." I put hand under my chin. "I wonder what kind of parents those two had."

Kawasaki looked at me rather intensely. "These people really need to believe in some real emotions, you know? Like love, or honesty or loyalty. When they do not find these qualities in their parents, how can they learn them?"

"It's tough to see, isn't it?" I agreed with her.

"I mean," she continued, "look at the father. He's got so much money and so many high up contacts, but if he cannot stay loyal to his wife, what's the point. The man maybe a millionaire…"

I had phased out already, my mind racing at the speed of light. Things clicked together now.

So that was why there was such a terrific amount of distrust everywhere. It all made sense.

I was right all along. There was something going on, and I had needed the perspective of an insider to gain more information. Rumor or not, such an accusation against the head of the Yukinoshita patriarch would have its damaging effects.

It made sense that Haruno would not trust him anymore. It also made sense why her mother, the matriarch would allow for such deep fault lines to develop under the family's tectonic plates, so to speak.

Kawasaki had fallen silent now, looking at my contemplative face.

"So, how goes your study plan for the finals?" I asked her without too much interest, my mind occupied with the various possibilities for explanations of Yukinoshita and Haruno's behavior.

We soon said our good byes soon after as the bell rang, and we headed separately back to class.

…

I headed to the club room as soon as the classes ended, leaving Yuigahama behind. I would have to face her incessant hitting after she arrived, but it was worth it if I could find out a little more about what problems Yukinoshita was facing in light of the information that had just been revealed to me.

In all the maelstrom of thoughts I had been hit with once Kawasaki had revealed the latest on the rumor mill surrounding the owner of the Yukinoshita company, I had become increasingly aware of the delicate position of Yukinoshita Yukino in the middle of all this.

That was of course, if the rumor was true. My experience with rumors tends to tell me that most rumors are simply hot air. You see, it isn't like I was the subject of a lot of ridiculous rumors…actually, frankly speaking that was the case. How depressing…

I sighed at that self-revelation as I entered the classroom. To find our Club president in a most frantic of states.

"Hik-Hikigaya kun!" She said in panic. Apart from the fact that I had never thought I would see her so flustered, what was surprising was also the fact that across her sat her elder sister.

Yukinoshita Haruno's presence was enough to fluster an outsider, but certainly not Yukinoshita Yukino, who would normally dismiss her elder sister with disdain and coldness most of the times when she got overly annoying.

So why this panic?

"Yo." I said shortly, and sat down in my own seat, looking at Haruno with curiosity. Now what may the devil need from the Service club?

"Ah, Hikigaya kun!" The devil smiled. Now that can't be right. A devil cannot smile so sweetly, can she?

But underneath that sweet smile, I could easily discern the cold regard of snake about to strike.

"Haruno." I acknowledged her presence. "To what does the service club owe the pleasure?"

"Oh nothing." She waved her hand daintily. "I took permission from Shizuka to let club out early. I wanted to take Yukino chan back home. Family matter." She said matter of factly.

"Good," I said with my eyes narrowing. "Less work for me. And I can go home quicker."

"Hikigaya kun!" I heard Yukinoshita's shriek of protest, and looked at her. But if she wanted to say something, the presence of Haruno curdled it. She looked at me as if I had betrayed her.

The door slid open with a certain violence.

"Yahallo Yukinon. Did Hikki come here-"

I assumed by her stopped short sentence that she had not only spotted me, but Haruno as well.

"Ah Gahama chan. That completes it. Yukino chan wanted us to stay here until the two of you were here to tell you that club today is out of session." What is this, a prefectural meeting?

"A-ah, Haruno san, good afternoon." Yuigahama said politely, still trying to process what Haruno had just said. "Wait, club is cancelled?" This dunce.

"Uh huh, yep yep. Go home Gahama chan." Haruno looked at me. "Hikigaya kun will take you."

But for once, I felt the need to confront her. In retrospect, that was probably a very bad idea indeed. But I had become insatiably curious with the new nugget of information I had obtained from Kawasaki, and I needed to determine how true that was.

"Actually, I would like to accompany Yukinoshita back home." And I received a smile of utter gratitude from Yukinoshita. She probably thought I was doing this for her. Well, as long as she didn't think I was against her.

"My my, Hikigaya kun, would you perhaps like to meet with our mother as well? And talk to her about, you know, Yukino chan things maybe? How bold."

"Nothing of the sort." I said dismissively.

Haruno shrugged, accepting my non-excuse, surprisingly enough. That she hadn't questioned my reasons was suspicious. Maybe she wanted to talk to me as much as I wanted to talk to her.

Yukinoshita started packing up, and I got up as well. Yuigahama still stared at all of us as if the pace of events was too fast for her to comprehend, which it probably was.

Yukinoshita halted in front of Haruno and said in her coldest voice, "I need to return the key to Hiratsuka sensei. I'll be back in five-"

"No need, Yukino chan. I'll just go ahead with Hikigaya kun. We'll wait for you at the gate."

I looked at Yuigahama. That girl really needed to snap out of it.

"Hey Yuigahama, go with Yukinoshita and return the key." I said. That snapped her out of her reverie.

"O-Okay." She said meekly, while Haruno tut-ted her disapproval.

Yukinoshita and Yuigahama left immediately, as if escaping an oppressive tyrant. Which by the way, was a good way to describe Haruno too.

"She's always so cold, that Yukino chan. I wonder what I did now…" She posed a thinker's pose.

"One wonders why she mistrusts you so much." I said in a conversational tone.

"Indeed." She snapped, annoyed.

We moved out slowly, I walking slowly, she, slower still.

"So, Haruno." I said, breaking the silence.

"Hmmmm?" She looked at me. "Oh, yeah, you would be wondering why there's been so much tension right? You are perceptible after all."

I nodded my head. No need for me to intervene if she was willing to talk herself.

"Yukino chan is just worried about certain things happening at home. That's all."

"Yeah, I heard your family is having a tough time, huh?"

She turned towards me abruptly with the sharpest of looks now adorning her adorable face. "You heard? Where did you hear from?"

Great. Now I was in a pickle. I would never tell her it was Kawasaki. That would put her at risk of getting fired.

"Those damn tabloids." She whispered.

That was the lifeline I needed. It happens so many times that if there is one source of trouble currently giving you problems, you tend to think that that is the source of all your problems.

That is exactly what was happening with Haruno. Maybe. Probably. I wasn't going to let this gift of an excuse get away.

I decided to err on the side of caution, and instead of saying something, simply nodded.

"It's not what the tabloids say Hikigaya kun." She said after a short time. "But sometimes there are boundaries you need to set. There are things I cannot tolerate. I cannot simply stand by while he does what he is doing."

"What is he doing?" I asked as innocently as possible.

She simply smiled coyly at me. Anyone else would have taken it as coyness, but it was more of a 'You think I would tell you?' look.

"Are you sure challenging him so openly is the right thing to do?" I asked carefully. "I mean, he does have a seat on the prefecture, you know?"

"Why are you so concerned? You don't even know what's happening."

"I'm just concerned with the innocent bystanders who get caught up in one of your games, Haruno."I dawdled. "Like that young man the other day who you dismissed and probably broke his heart."

"So what, you've got an affinity for rejected people. I can understand where you are coming from, given that you yourself-wait a minute." She jerked her head in surprise. "Wait a minute, this isn't about other people, is it?" She narrowed her eyes to the point when they were barely slits. Back up you devil. I need my personal space.

"No, it's not. You romantic devil, you. You are worried about Yukino chan, right? You want to make sure she doesn't get caught in the crossfire, right? My gosh, Hikigaya kun, you really are something else."

She kept poking me in the chest throughout. I can only imagine the hue of my face. I could feel a lot of blood rushing to my head.

"N-No, it's nothing of the sort-"

"Don't be so boring, Hikigaya kun. Don't be so boring. You do like her. And you are willing to look out for her, aren't you?"

"Well…she is my club mate."

"Hikigaya kun." She backed me into a corner along the wall. How on earth had we ended up in this remote dark corridor of a remote part of the school? And all of a sudden, her eyes looked rather disconcerting, as if they were shining. I wanted to say it was malice, but no, it was something else entirely. I had seen malice before on so many faces, when one person wanted the other to have an accident or something. This was different. But its intensity scared me nevertheless.

"You know that your useless excuses with which you think you fool others do not work on me at all. You know that right? Onee san can always look through others, just as you look through others as well. Why bother hiding?"

For once, I knew she wouldn't let go of the subject unless she heard the actual truth.

And the truth was…damn it if I knew what the truth was.

Why was I working so hard to make sure Yukinoshita stayed out of this? Did I even know if she was involved or not? One thing about Yukinoshita was certainly that she never told the entire truth, just the parts that suited herself the most. That was what the entire incident about the car accident taught me.

And wasn't that a corollary for everything that we all did. We conveniently edited parts that showed our weakness, our humiliations, our imperfections, while highlighting what we did right. Humans were very selective that way.

"I don't know why I am helping her so much." I said, forcing out a sincere sigh. "She's more than just a clubmate now. Someone I care for enough to look out for. She has been with me through some really tough times. So…I don't know, I guess even if she doesn't admit it, we are friends. If someone looks out for you, they are a friend, right?"

"Such a naïve world view…Coming from a cynic like you, that's quite surprising."

For some reason, that comment irritated me more than it should have.

"So what defines a friend then? Shallow talk? Self congratulatory drivel that I hear from all you rich kids? Making fun at someone else's expense? Does that form friendships for you?"

Haruno looked at me, surprised by my outburst. "Well, I guess I was wrong at that point, then. So you consider Yukino chan a friend of yours?"

"Yes." I said with an exasperated sigh. "Going by my definition of friendship, I do consider her a friend."

"But is that enough? Are you the guy that doesn't want anything more because if you risk it all for a relationship, you might lose your friendship if she rejects you?"

"Hold your horses, miss. I never said I wanted anything more. And all of that is a moot point because she doesn't want anything more either. I am not going to fall for the cliché romcom situation again."

"Again, huh? Well, you reverted back into your dense idiot-man position again so quickly. I wonder if you will ever grow out of it ever. Is that stagnation acceptable to you, Hikigaya kun? Will you ever trust anyone again, I wonder?"

I have to admit, every word hammered into my ears with the force of a bullet or an arrow thinking into my emotional self.

Was I really going to stagnate? My quasi-serious aspirations of becoming a house-husband required me to marry someone at some point or the other. That meant I had to fall for someone at some time.

I shook myself out of my own reverie. That was the problem with talking to Haruno. She always brought up questions in myself that shook my own self confidence. But at least, she bought up questions that had a reason, that forced me to take another look at myself.

Whatever the case, we had restarted walking towards the gate, and we had nearly reached there, when I snapped out of my thoughts to see Haruno discreetly observing me with a humorless smile on her face.

"Onee san only wants you to grow up quickly so that you can take responsibility off her shoulders." She smiled as she whispered those words, poking my lips with her finger.

But behind that smile, I could sense a vast chasm of loneliness. This woman needed support, whether she was a manipulative person or not.

I let silence answer her.

…..

Yukinoshita joined us at the gate, informing us that Yuigahama had left from another gate. It seems she would have had to explain Yuigahama what was happening by pulling wool her eyes. Another aspect of this family struggle to come would be if Yukinoshita lost all her friendships (read friendship, singular) because of that.

We walked along the side of the road in utter silence. And strangely enough, it was Yukinoshita who kept glancing all the time, sometimes towards her sister, sometimes towards me.

Was this guilt I was seeing? Was Yukinoshita aware that I knew what Haruno was trying to do?

The question I had been avoiding all along until now was whether Yukinoshita was involved in the entire takeover affair with her mother and Haruno. And if so, to what extent?

Haruno had told me before that Yukinoshita was her father's girl. What emotions did she have regarding this entire affair? More importantly, would these emotions lead her to act directly against Haruno and her mother?

And the primary and most important question of all. If the tabloids claimed that the Yukinoshita family head was having an affair, and Haruno directly refuted that, then what was the reason why she was trying to remove her father from the scene? Knock him out of his throne so to speak.

I sighed. Politics was frustratingly difficult.

A loud ringing interrupted my thoughts.

Haruno answered her phone, and her face went from slightly relaxed to extremely rigid.

"What?!" She suddenly shouted. "I'll be there as soon as I can."

Suddenly, she grabbed out and clasped Yukinoshita's hands.

"Yukino chan, we need to get home now." She said intensely.

"Wh-What?Wh-What happened? Why are you so-"

"Just come quick." She said, and quickly waved at a taxi, which pulled over.

"Hikigaya-kun, sorry, I have to leave so early."

But apparently Yukinoshita was desperate to not get pulled into one of her sister's tricks.

"Nee-san, I am not moving until you tell me what happened."

"Yukino chan, this is no time to get obstinate. We need-"

"No. Tell me now. I am sick of you throwing me around like this." Yukinoshita held out. She seriously sounded like a ten year old complaining about bed time.

"The matter is too delicate to be discussed here in public." Haruno hissed in frustration.

"Then make it short. What's the emergency?"

Haruno sighed in frustration. The looked around with a drooping face that verged on breaking out in tears.

"Father was found in his office. Hanging from a noose. He's dead."

I felt my stomach drop. Too soon, far too soon for anything. It was only afternoon yet. And yet it was dark as midnight.

 **AN** : Hello readers. This is the latest installment of the 'Vulture' series I started out a few months (phew, months!) ago. You know the drill. Exams, assignments and what not occupied my time.

But if I have to give credit to anyone for getting me out of my writer's block, it was the last three reviews or so. To be honest, I had almost given up on this project because I couldn't find the motivation to continue. But because there seems to be some demand (three people to be precise), and since I already have the story mapped out, I decided to challenge myself with this thriller/mystery concept once again.

I understand that the story may be a bit more philosophical than normal for a thriller, but this is the way I love doing things and it's what motivates me to write, so bear with me, and I hope it gets better for you.

Anyhow, I will be starting on the next chapter very soon, so it shouldn't take me another two months to update. (I hope!)


	3. Chapter 3

Black.

The color itself should have no connotations. Colors are after all, neutral. Going back to my middle school physics and what I gather from my High School physics, every color has a certain wavelength that defines it.

It is, however, us humans that give color meaning.

The Black Death, for example. Really, the plague in the middle ages Europe was a result of fleas and rats transmitting the disease. What does Black have to do with it?

And which genius decided that pink had to be related solely to women? Why did we attach meanings to colors?

And then I realized that, as was my habit, I was once again trying to escape from the situation at hand. Escapism, they call it. Such a glorious word for a human instinct.

Did anyone ever realize that only when exams are near does that movie that you have been delaying, sound like such a good idea? Or that when an assignment deadline is near, only then do we realize that there is that game on your vita-chan that you need to complete?

Classic examples of escapism, I tell you.

Heh, very interesting my analysis of colors and escapism and what not. I should be a psychologist.

One way or the other, the situation I was in was distressing, and that's putting it very mildly.

In front of me lay the scion of the Yukinoshita family. A man known for not just his wealth but his affluence, influence and political connections. A man who, I am quite sure, once thought he was invincible.

As do they all. Everyone loves to believe they are invincible. Standing up in the balcony of a pent house on the hundredth floor and watching the citizens of Chiba run about their lives- it might have seemed to this person that they were all ants, scurrying about trying to survive.

But if I may be allowed to indulge in morbidity, once a person is buried, it is ants and such organisms that decompose a body. Six feet under for them all, whether a grave for a millionaire or for a pauper.

The man lay before me, screaming his legacy. As had all the powerful rulers and politicians before him. Power, wealth, attitude, influence- It was all for naught.

I shook myself from such negative thoughts and approached Yukinoshita Yukino. The raven haired High school student had subsided from her crying, now only sniffling into Yuigahama's shoulder. And she had made a mess of Yuigahama's dress.

Some way away, I could see Mrs. Yukinoshita, a steely but slightly vulnerable look on her face, as she observed her daughter with concern evident on her face, half-heartedly returning the condolences and other such niceties that people in this kind of society were wont to provide with.

I could see a golden haired young man in a dark suit on the other side of the dark beige hall, but decided to ignore him. Haruno was nowhere in sight.

I decided to try and comfort Yukinoshita as much as I could. Comforting others was never my forte, but from the experience that I had gained from dealing with Komachi (who would never admit it, but cried a lot when she was little), and that fact that Yukinoshita was my club mate, and a person I considered close, if not a friend, I had to comfort her, or at least try.

I made my way towards the girl, and for the first time felt truly discomfited. Yukinoshita knew how to put up a steely façade in front of her.

When she was bullied, whether she never had friends, even if no one truly cared for her and abandoned her, she had kept a façade of strength in front of herself. For her to break down like this was something I would never wish to happen to her. I stood by her side, not knowing if she ever noticed my presence, my mind swirling with all those endless possibilities of what might have happened.

Seeing that my presence was doing no good at all, and since I could not bring myself to talk at such a time, I decided to go further into the suite of rooms. Walking outside to the patio brought me to a more isolated part of the house.

Turning the corner to where the garden was, I spotted a figure dressed in all black. But there was no mistaking the curves of the figure that made up Haruno Yukinoshita.

Normally, one would expect such a person to be surrounded with figures, but here all I saw was a lonesome person cutting a figure so lonely, it was almost impossible to believe this was Haruno.

I approached her for the first time in my life, as opposed to her pursuing me for her nefarious purposes. All I could think of was Hayama's words about how Haruno was poised to take over the company. Mighty convenient turn of events for her, without a doubt.

Could Haruno have committed murder? I'll bet anyone who knew about the rumors surrounding the Yukinoshita family would have at least suspected a bit that there was a remote possibility that Haruno was central to all this.

But knowing from her past behavior, did her behavior warrant such suspicions? Sure, she was devious, manipulative and so on, but murder? Her own father? If not her, then was this just a mere coincidence? Just a suicide?

All this and more weighed on my mind, as she turned her face towards me, looking…angry.

No, wait, was that… by all gods, were those tears on her face? I suddenly realized I might be interrupting one of her most personal moments.

Half torn whether I should turn around and walk away, she called out, destroying that last hope of retreat.

"Oh, Hikigaya kun. Very sneaky of you." She started, wiping her face delicately with a handkerchief.

"Sneaking up was not…that is-I'm s-sorry." I made to apologize.

"No, no, it's all right." She waved me over. And like a fool, I walked over towards her.

A heavy silence settled over the garden, and except for the grasshoppers chirping away, all noise from the house itself seemed to fade away to nothingness.

"Is there anything I can do…?" I asked just to break out of the silence that had settled over us.

She shook her head. "Nothing you can do here, Hikigaya kun. I would ask you to comfort Yukino, but we both know you don't do that very well. So…" she turned towards me and looked with those tear stained eyes that she had so desperately tried to hide from me by trying to wipe away any traces of crying, "maybe you can just comfort a beautiful onee san."

With the moonlight creating a halo around her face, if there was a face that looked vulnerable, it was Haruno Yukinoshita's.

It was always a mystery to me how those strong people found the conviction to move forward and keep going. In my mother's case, I knew it was us, her children. Children can be a very strong motivating factor. But what about those who had just a generic family connection? Was that connection enough to warrant surviving such trials and tribulations?

Never had I seen such vulnerability on the face of a woman I had always held to have the best of facades, or a public mask, if you will.

I could analyze this from so many different angles.

Her vulnerability made her all the more...luscious. I guess it is every person's dream to have a woman depend on him and expose her vulnerable side to him and him alone. And I had seen Yukinoshita Haruno with the toughest of masks trying to make sure no one ever understood her true nature, which might amount from being simply malicious, to being bored. Well, being bored most of the time.

To have a woman like that expose her true feelings to me felt thrilling. It was as if I was special. And these emotions warred with so many other possibilities of why she was doing this. All these emotions were created within me by myself, without the possibility of her manipulating me to feel this way.

But could she be acting this way? I knew very well that Haruno was more than capable of acting and putting on a great act at that. Was she acting this way to simply gain my trust?

'Oh look at that poor woman, so very vulnerable, so innocent. No one can possibly think she had anything to do with her father's death, can they?' Maybe that was the effect she was gunning for.

Or maybe, she was actually vulnerable. As the newly minted CEO of her father's company, I could not even begin to imagine the kind of heavy responsibilities that fell on her dainty little shoulders. And all this when she was not even out of college!

Not to mention the fact that despite all their differences, family spats are the most common of things found everywhere. That didn't mean the two hated each other to the point where one had to go the human extreme of killing someone.

As all these thoughts rushed through my mind, I felt a strange softness on my shoulder and sides.

"What are you-Haruno, what are you doing?" I panicked. She had leaned on to my shoulder and I could feel…everything.

"I would ask you to hold me, but I know you won't be doing that, so at least let me rest a little on a warm body."

She gave me a wan smile with upturned eyes, her eyelashes flickering in the soft lighting coming from the lamp posts that were dotted all around the grounds.

The problem with all this was that my heart raced a million miles an hour. It's very easy to wax elegant about how others manipulate you in this rotten-to-the-core society, but try saying that when you have a warm soft body of one of those (so called, suspected) manipulators and the heart takes over from the head.

That feeling of losing control is…I could only describe it as discombobulating. I couldn't think straight. And for all my cynicisms, I couldn't help but snake my arm around her shoulder as she snuggled into me further, burrowing herself as if asking for protection from a cruel dangerous world that had treated her so very cruelly.

Her manipulative side aside, everyone human needed someone they could trust, someone they could really talk to. And while her mother was the boss of manipulators, her younger sister was too disgusted by who Haruno was and what she did to ever talk to her. You could say Yukino worshipped Haruno from afar, yet hated her for who she was.

For such a person, to extend her my sympathies when all her surrounding and environment had treated her so callously was something I felt a natural gravitation towards.

I smirked mentally at myself. Sure, Hachiman, the Knight in Black armor, rescuing maidens from their evil dragon captors (read mothers) and helping out damsels in distress.

That was so against my regular image. My regular image would be that of the evil knight who everyone wanted to kill…

As she leaned against me, her soft breath a breeze of intimacy on my black vest, I struggled with another problem. And that problem was that I suspected my integrity as an objective observer in these proceedings was now compromised.

You see, as a logical person, there was no way I would voluntarily give up my objectivity. Being subjective put up a lens in front of your world view which distorted that image. That image, the true one, was all important. For there would be no truth if I couldn't remove and nullify these distortions. For a person trying to dig out the truth, this was an alarming development indeed. My objectivity aside, what if Haruno was capable of manipulating everyone to her side this way? Did that not make what I felt towards her a complete sham?

And what was with this attraction that I felt towards her? She was dangerous, and I knew it. Was it just human nature to be attracted to the dangerous part of something? What was the point in trying to be with someone as complicated as Haruno? Were simple people not good enough? Just because they loved you sincerely and did not pose a challenge did not make their value any the lesser.

It was with these thoughts, objectivity, death and all, with Haruno softly clinging to my side, that I breathed in the cold breeze from the gale that blew our way, further cementing the two of us. And even if I could, objectivity and all that, I still wouldn't have attempted to separate her from myself.

She separated herself from me after a while, and my mind went back to its regular suspicious song. I had regained my cynicisms. Whew, close one that.

Webs, everywhere, tangles, spins, yarns, and tangles yet again, So many were the possibilities that it was difficult to not be overwhelmed.

To top it all off, Haruno had showed me her vulnerable side, and I just couldn't get that image of a helpless young woman out of my mind. Evil she may be, but help she certainly needed. And if there was ever one thing that I was a sucker for, it would someone asking me to help them. That it happened to come from a certain beautiful lady, ah, there I go again, knight in shining armor and all that.

And it certainly did not appear to me that Haruno was trying to manipulate me.

In all this, I felt that key data was missing. I just did not have anything whatsoever that could help me figure out how to eliminate any of my theories. I was, in essence, boxing with shadows.

"Haruno". A loud feminine voice called out for her, breaking us out of the rather heavy mood that had built itself and enmeshed us into it.

"Ah-that's mother. I'd better go and see what she wants." She didn't need to move though. The Yukinoshita matriarch appeared, her laser eyes homing in on Haruno. I thought I detected contempt when she her eyes landed on me.

"There you are. I had hoped you wouldn't have pranced off shirking your responsibilities. There are still guests around, you know?"

Haruno looked unsure about how to respond to that. Then, determinedly said, "I think I need some time alone, Mother. The guests aren't the people we should be worrying about."

Huh, it looked like Haruno was making a stand here.

"Well, we still need to take care of those who have come to pay their respects to your father. Please look after them."

She might have said 'please', but every part of that sentence she had communicated was a command, and no mistake.

If looks could kill, Haruno would have been guilty of matricide. With a slight roll of her shoulder, she leaned closer to my ear. I had always been irritated when she blew into my ear, but this time, she seriously said, "Hikigaya kun, catch you later." Then leaned in, and in full view of her Mother, kissed me on the cheek.

I didn't have time to be embarrassed. Her feet scuttled off, and she was gone just like that, her Mother still staring slack jawed in surprise.

Even if I had wanted to protest my innocence, it would certainly have been of no avail. Once again, if looks could kill, Mrs Yukinoshita would have been guilty of murder. My murder.

Haruno had left me at a rather bad time. And she had tried to get back at her mother through me. And it looked from the way she was angrily staring at me as if I was about to bear the brunt of her displeasure.

"Hikigaya-kun, was it?"

"Yes." I managed to keep my face straight, though my head was begging me to run away a la Sonic the Hedgehog.

"What may your relation with my daughter be?"

"Ah, I'm just Yukinoshita…err Yukino's clubmate."

"Nothing more?" Her voice held the suspicion of a detective questioning a murder suspect.

"N-No. Nothing more!"

She glared at me. "Good. Know your place, and try not to get involved in matters that aren't your business."

Her voice held the condescending tone of a Land owner addressing her peasant serf, or something like that.

"Yes, of course." Time for me to hit back though. "I'm sure you are dealing with all this very well by yourself. Haruno seems most happy the way you treat her."

What was I doing? Too late to berate myself, but this woman was the wrong person to make an enemy of. But I realized that someone needed to stand for the two sisters. Why me? I don't know. I screamed at myself mentally.

And was rewarded for my rather bold sentence with a narrowed gaze.

"I realize that you may not understand the way I treat her. But you are no parent. You will only understand when you become one yourself. So until then, keep your opinions to yourself."

In for a penny, in for a pound, my Father always says. No point in backing down now.

"Sure, of course. I cannot understand your problems, and neither can I imagine what you are going through." I took a deep breath. "But that doesn't mean I keep quiet when I see my friend getting pushed around."

"Watch it!" She hissed at me, and my heart jumped. "Your next words are going to be important, Hikigaya kun. Make sure you think twice before you say anything."

"Of course." I breathed out, letting the tension wash over myself. If this family was going to stay together, I needed to unify them, not divide. Which meant I needed to give her advice without making myself sound like an obnoxious person, or worst an idiot.

But the problem with that was that I did not know what I was getting into. What if Haruno was indeed responsible for her Father's death? As unlikely as that sounded, she would then need her Mother's backing. If I gave her the wrong advice, she would probably not take to it very well at best, and at worse, I would be making an utter fool of myself.

But then, there was something basic. Something that everyone in power needed to understand. That they did not control everything, and that everyone resented being forced to do something.

"Haruno…she likes to make her own decisions. She's big enough for that, and mature enough too. If you need her to do something, then make her understand why something is important, rather than just saying she should do that thing."

The lady in front of me smiled. But it wasn't a sweet smile. No, this one was as cynical and ugly as it gets.

"The day I need advice from a high schooler regarding how to raise my children is the day hell freezes."

She whirled around and stalked away.

Had I done more damage than good?

One thing was for sure. This woman's ego would never let her see beyond petty appearances of being right all the time and never being wrong.

I guess her husband's death hadn't really changed her at all. She was the same person that made both the sisters hate her and each other. Old habits die hard, I guess. Literally and metaphorically.

I sighed, wrung out by that conversation. Looking up at the sky, the moon hadn't come out of the clouds yet.

I moved back towards where I remembered Yukinoshita and Yuigahama were sitting. And found to my surprise that there was no Yuigahama around, only a sniffling Yukinoshita.

She gave me a small smile and an even smaller wave, and for a moment I thought she was going to be all right. Her next words immediately destroyed all that.

"Hikigaya kun, I can do with some of the wine they are serving at the bar."

"You really sure you want to drink your problems away at this hour?"

To be honest, I was a bit shocked. A straight and uptight model student like Yukinoshita wouldn't ask for an alcoholic drink. That was a major break from her Modus operandi.

"I feel so cold, Hikigaya kun."

"Let me get a Yuigahama, she'll warm you up real quick."

She smiled at my little joke, and I felt relieved. At least she could still smile.

"Hikigaya kun," she voiced out after hesitating a bit, "I need to go upstairs…" Her voice petered out.

"Okay. I'll wait here." I said trying to sound understanding. She started fidgeting at that.

"Ummm…can you…could you please…accompany me?"

"Accompany you where?"

"I just need to get a change of clothes. But I feel afraid going up by myself."

Oh-Oh, I get it, she wanted me to accompany her upstairs.

"A-are you sure?" That she would trust me so much was beyond my understanding. After all, she was used to calling me a variety of names.

And if she was afraid of going alone, it meant that there was no one upstairs. Which meant I would be alone with her. Gods of romcom, why do you test me like this?

She looked at me pleadingly, her mouth a U shape screaming 'Please?' at me.

"If you really want me to…." I muttered. Suddenly my face felt rather warm.

"T-Thank you." She muttered lightly, and I waved my hand.

We headed up the stairs, me following her at a small distance.

She looked furtively around. This place was huge. For a family of four, and given the fact that one of them had lived separately, this place was far too large for just the three people that lived here.

"It's daunting, isn't it?" She opened a conversation, turning her head around slightly, her hands deep within her pockets.

"What is?"

"This place…it's just so huge. Such large corridors… and so empty too. I never liked this place much. It is so cold here…" She rubbed her hands along her sides, and I thought I saw her shiver.

"Yeah, it definitely is large." Man, I really suck at this comforting business.

We continued walking, and turned a few corners, finally arriving at a large oaken door. She turned around towards me rather abruptly.

"This was my room…before I…" I nodded. Before she had decided to live by herself. It was true though. This place was really cold and empty. It felt as if despite all the splendor and rich paintings and wall hangings, this place would never be cheerful.

"Let's go inside." She said, and opened the door. I gulped, suddenly very conscious of the situation we were in. I was in Yukinoshita's room, all alone, with no one around. And it occurred to me that I might just be walking into a trap.

One way this might end up would be with me in Yukinoshita's bed…I shook myself violently and slapped myself. I didn't want to think of that possibility. Besides, it's not like she liked me anyway.

But the other reason I was also worried was because something occurred to me that I hadn't thought of before.

What if, theoretically speaking, Yukinoshita was herself involved in her father's death? After all, Hayama had insinuated that she was helping her sister overthrow her father. What if she decided to get rid of me right here right now? Who would be any the wiser anyway?

I shook my head, dislodging such thoughts and entered the room. I was letting my imagination run away with itself. No way was Yukinoshita a killer, right?

Right.

Because no killer looked half as good as she did.

Hold on. What do looks have to do with murder? If she was power hungry enough, well, people are willing to go far enough to achieve whatever they wanted, be it riches, power, whatever.

I entered the room and was immediately hit with darkness. Sudden panic swelled within me. What was she up to? Where was she?

I looked around, and heard something falling, and ducked instinctively.

"Sorry, I cannot get the switch working. Let me find the other switch." Her voice came out, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I needed to get a hold of myself. I could not allow my paranoia to reign over myself.

She managed to get the light working, and I was finally able to take a look around.

I was greeted by a suffusion of brown, white, beige and coffee colors. Everything looked spotless, even though she hadn't been here in a while. It must have been the maids, then.

She walked off towards the bathroom door, and looked over her shoulder. I'm not sure if the two phenomenon are related, but my heart beat certainly spiked. Her face looked incredibly soft, yet pointed at the same time. The kind that would take your breath away.

"I don't need to tell you this, but should your perverted tendencies make you consider somehow unlocking the door and peek through, consider how much you value your eyes. Because should I catch you in the act, both of them will be…gone."

All she had to do was laugh the evil laugh and I would be convinced she was evil incarnate.

"O-okay. Not like I would want to." I averted my eyes.

"Huh? Why wouldn't you? Are you saying I'm not womanly enough?"

What? How did it get here? How come you were just threatening me with death for peeking, now you're demanding why I wouldn't? What's wrong with you?

All the while, I stayed quiet, trying to formulate a response. And was broken out of my thoughts by a giggle, followed by the sound of her door closing.

I collapsed on the beige sofa, exhausted. I just couldn't take these women and their attitudes anymore. It was so very exhausting trying to figure out what they were thinking. Maybe what they say is right after all. Women can never be fully understood.

And then a thought occurred to me that I almost wish had not occurred in the first place. If anyone walked in on me sitting in Yukinoshita's room on her sofa, I cannot even begin to imagine what kind of rumors and so on that would spawn.

My God! I almost panicked. I looked around frantically, then immediately walked over to hide behind the curtains just in case someone did walk in. After all, maids were known to walk in unannounced. Come to think of it, they were very gossip-y too.

It was thus that my heart nearly stopped beating when I saw a trail of papers on a pin board hidden cleverly behind the curtain.

Now, I'm not really the kind of person that intentionally pokes into other' business, but the contents of the various pinned papers on the board made my eyes bulge with surprise.

Now, once again, I'm not the kind of person who is easily surprised. I've seen so many weird things in my life. But this one certainly took the cake. For the board in front of me had content that seemed most suspicious.

I pored my eyes over it and quickly tried to read all I could, hoping that Yukinoshita wouldn't emerge from the bathroom too quickly.

The first paper contained various figures that seemed to show finances of the Yukinoshita Ltd company. Several figures were marked with red circles, and these, I assumed, were discrepancies. The next page had shareholders' names and their shares written down by hand.

The third had haphazard scribbling on it written by hand. They seemed to be notes of some sort. I cursed the dim light and squinted my eyes trying to read what was written.

"Shares…money missing?...environmental…problems? Haruno…allies….Fujibayashi Holdings…"

It was the next page that really caught my attention, though. It seemed to be some sort of a police enquiry report that detailed the scene of the suicide.

And the scene was described in typical bullish and straight forward police style. Essentially, the most important part of the scene that the police had found had been the fact that there had been signs of a disturbance around the seat from where Mr Yukinoshita had jumped off to affect the suicide. But what was written in Yukinoshita's handwriting below caught my eye.

"Truly a suicide? Can someone not have subdued him? Forced to put himself on the noose? Perpetrator had weapons? Evidence against Father? Threatened family members or someone else? Is the mess around Father's seat because of physical scuffle?

Why was window open? For air? Point of entrance for the intruder?"

And the, if all the above wasn't bad enough, there was one last word that made me feel a chill go up my spine.

"Haruno…?"

My mind raced a million miles an hour, evaluating all the possibilities

The lock turned on the bathroom's key and Yukinoshita emerged, refreshed. If I had to describe her, she was…glowing, her face calm and composed. She even had a slight smile on her face, as if she had given herself a prep talk asking herself to get a hold of things.

I emerged from the curtains hoping she hadn't noticed I was behind them.

"Hikigaya-kun? Oh-there you are. Truly, are you so low?" She paused. She had noticed. What was going to happen now? She approached me, my heart now deciding to run a marathon. Could you get a heart attack just because your heart rate spiked?

"Would you hide yourself, then jump and take advantage of a defenseless girl? Especially when she is mourning?"

I released my breath, one that I hadn't realized I had been holding back.

And defenseless? Who has the black belt in some martial art, pray?

I took out a glass from one of the stands and poured myself some water, forcing myself to not appear shaky. Right now, if I wasn't forcing myself to stand straight, my knees would probably have buckled.

"Let's go back, shall we?

"A-actually, Hikigaya kun…" She broke off, holding my arm lightly.

In the soft lights that adorned her room, her face looked infinitely beautiful.

If Haruno should be described, she was the flaming hot type. But if Yukino was to be described, she was beautiful, in the true sense of that word.

"Can I ask for a dance, Hikigaya kun?" She bit her lower lip. Her entire manner was that of a hesitant girl, asking for a date- NO! Not that, definitely not that. I would never fall into that trap again. And yet- from her soft face, from her general mannerisms for the past few months, that talk with Haruno when she said Yukino was my responsibility… well, it was hard to deny that logical part of my head that said there was something else going on here as well.

Acutely aware of the blush on her face, and the perfume-wait perfume? She must've put it on just now, I took her hand, my other arm holding her shoulder blade.

It was then that I realized that something was wrong with this picture. Oh, that's right. Where are my protestations? The Hachiman of the old would never have simply accepted a request for a dance without protesting. For sure, there was something wrong with me. I would never have accepted this before. So did that mean that I really wanted this?

Or it could be just the fact that at this moment in time, I was doing whatever it took to take her mind off of the macabre turn of events that had so affected her?

"Wait!" She frantically pulled away, then grabbed the remote for her TV. A large one at that. She opened a playlist and I read the name of the track she had just put on. The Swan Lake Waltz, apparently. Someone named Tchaikovsky. She decreased the volume as it started, so that only the two of us could hear it.

She shimmered back towards me, and my breath caught as she looked into my eyes and said, "Now, dance with me, Hikigaya kun."

And somehow, for some reason, all those lessons that Komachi practiced on me when we were younger and she had insisted on me dancing with her, came back. I led, and she followed, my feet keeping track of where she went. Most of my focus went on her shoulders and my hand that held soft hands. I'm sure creams and other lotions kept it smooth, and I could smell…cinnamon.

Her shoulders were so narrow, I felt I could squeeze them together, and if I picked her up, I'm sure she wouldn't have weighed much. Somehow that image of picking her up bridal style got stuck into my head. I shook my head only to find Yukinoshita's angled face staring at me. We couldn't have been more than a quarter of a meter apart. And all I could think of was how beautiful she looked.

The song wound out, and the two of us separated, her hand lingering on mine for a tad longer, as if she did not want to let go of it.

Must be so hard on her losing a parent who loved her so much. But what of those notes I had seen behind the curtain? Was she investigating the death of her father? Did she think Haruno had something to do with it?

And I had to wonder, how much of the true picture was I seeing here? Wasn't there something the psychologists called tunnel vision? When you saw only what was presented to you, and made conclusions from only what you could see, weren't you liable to make mistakes? To misjudge the situation, and make drastic mistakes?

My thoughts crashed and plunged, and my mind went blank as I felt a warm velvety hand cup my chin, and the other moved to my cheek. She had my face encased within her hands.

"Hikigaya-kun, no, Hachiman." My heart leapt at her calling me by my first name.

"You have always challenged me to think beyond my comfort zone. And you have always caught me when I stumbled. Can- can you do that for me now? Will you support me? Will you go out with me?"

 **A/N:** All right. First off, confessions. The dance part was very heavily influenced by the fanfic 'Box Step' by 'Some Chinese Guy' (No, not some Chinese guy, but his name is 'Some Chinese Guy'). And I'll be the first to admit that my rendition of a dance between the two pales in comparison with how he/she wrote.

Second, I'm not sure when I'll be writing again. I have a hell of a lot of stuff going on, and it may easily be a couple of months before I get to write anything further.

Finally, thank you for all the critical reviews. One thing I love about people challenging me is that it helps me break out of my trope and narrative filled bubble and go beyond what I like and explore even more. This helps me immensely grow as a writer and make the story better.

So, I really appreciate honest reviews that challenge the way something has been written.

Anyhow, till next time.


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